


Look Forward to Sundays

by Sacchen



Category: Persona 5
Genre: Age Regression/De-Aging, Caregiver Tae, F/M, Little Akira, Non-Sexual Age Play, Pacifiers, eventual hurt/comfort, stuffed animals
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-26
Updated: 2020-08-28
Packaged: 2021-03-06 20:21:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,317
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26114863
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sacchen/pseuds/Sacchen
Summary: Tae is the only one who gets to see Akira like this. And most importantly, she's the only one who gets to take care of him. And Akira wouldn't have it any other way.
Relationships: Kurusu Akira & Takemi Tae, Kurusu Akira/Takemi Tae
Comments: 4
Kudos: 38





	1. A (Mostly) Surprise Visit

**Author's Note:**

> I wanted a fic with Little!Akira and Caregiver!Tae and if it wasn't written already, by god I would do it myself. 
> 
> More tags to come as I write more!

Sunday is the only day that he can stay up in his room without responsibilities, worries, and most importantly, without being interrupted. Sure, there’s the occasional Sunday where they can’t be avoided- Phantom Thieves work and all. But most times, they decide Sundays can remain their day off. If there’s no deadline, no Calling Card to put out, or a reason to go into Mementos; then Sunday remains the day that he doesn’t have to be...himself. 

_ Himself _ means that he doesn’t have to be the Akira that can handle the weight of his team on his shoulders. He can be the Akira that prefers quiet, and the one that stays in bed unless he has to get up. 

He’s lost track of time, he can only assume it’s getting late because the sun has started to go down. And for a moment, he gets worried because he hasn’t eaten today. That’s not good. He makes a mental note to try and eat more often. Leblanc is likely still open downstairs, meaning he can’t walk down there in just his pajamas. No matter how much he would like to. Akira throws around the clothes next to his laundry basket, searching for clothes that weren’t necessarily the cleanest, but didn’t smell either. And as soon as they were on, he felt off. Different. 

Akira lets out a soft whine, tugs at the shirt he’d chosen. Much too scratchy. An awful texture. It’s okay. As soon as he’s back upstairs he can put his pajamas back on, he just needs some food. 

But he didn’t expect to meet eyes with one of his favorite people once he got downstairs. She must have known. Of course, she knows it's Sunday. 

Tae sat in her normal seat, the middle booth facing the stairs. Every time Akira finds her at Leblanc, she’s always there, either doing paperwork or scrolling through her phone. He feels himself slip just a little bit more. By now he’d entirely forgotten about the horrible texture of the shirt he’d put on. It seems that she had noticed either he’d come down or she’d noticed someone new standing in her field of view. 

“Akira.” She must have known he wouldn’t be all there. Using his name pulls him back a bit if he isn’t in too deep. The way Akira straightens up and she thinks she sees him take a breath, it works. Tae gestures to the seat across from her. But she knows full well he’d rather crawl in her seat next to her. Still, Akira slides in across from her. It’s that smile on his face- the one that is so happy to see her that makes her go easy on him. “You haven’t come to see me this week. I thought you forgot all about me.” 

“No!” He pauses, realizing his voice got a bit louder than he meant it to. Akira catches the half glare from Sojiro behind the counter, and mouths an apology to him. “No- no never I just...had a lot of homework, and one day I got soaked on the walk home, and-” Akira pauses to catch his breath. 

Tae knows that she made him get worked up more than she intended, “Hey, hey you’re okay, only teasing.” By now he should know that she likes to get under his skin like that. It’s all playful, of course, it is. But when Akira is slipping like this, he tends to take things more literally and misses the playful tone behind other things. “I came by because I had an important question.” She then takes a drink from her cup, “As well as, you know, getting some of this in my system.” 

Akira sits up in his seat, leans forward a little, “A question?” 

“Can you sneak me in after closing?” 

It’s a risky question, but one that he will say yes to. Or, normally he would say yes to. “I...I dunno about that one.” For a moment, Tae is confused as to why that would be his answer. “I don’t wanna get in trouble…” Akira’s voice is lower, almost a whisper. So much so that Tae had to think about what he said over to really understand it. 

Tae bumps her foot up against Akira’s ankle, “You won’t get in trouble, it’s okay.” She can still see that he’s unsure about it. Normally she’d be thankful he’s that worried about getting in trouble. If only he could be like this other days. Tae leans forward, bumping his ankle again to get his attention. “Mama says it's okay, right?” She’s almost as quiet as he was before. 

And there is the visible slip again. The slump of the shoulders, the way he curls in on himself. Akira’s eyes are a little wider, but they almost seem happier. In response to her question, he gives a nod. “Then it’s okay. You won’t get in any trouble.” At least she hopes. “You should get back upstairs, I’ll call you in a bit.” Tae’s heart- while as strong as she says it is - almost melts at how happy he looks. Akira would love to reach across the table and give her a kiss, or to hold her hand, but there are people around. And there’s the risk that he’ll get too affectionate. Not now. Wait until she comes back. 

Akira gathers himself up. Just pull yourself together enough to get to the stairs. He waves towards Tae as he stands up. His posture is as straight as he can manage on the short walk back to the stairs. That’s when he remembers. Before he goes upstairs, Akira turns to face Tae again. Sojiro can’t see him in the hallway, and the other patron’s backs are to him. So he blows her a kiss as best he can, with the sweetest grin. Tae gently grasps at the air as a way of catching it, offering a wink in return. Then she waves him off to go back up the stairs. 

He does so. 


	2. Oyakodon

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tae comes for a visit, and Akira tries his best to help her make dinner

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one's a lot longer. I probably could have split it up into two chapters but I like having longer ones to put out. Means that I can take a few days break in between writing these. If you have any ideas for other chapters, let me know! I only have ideas for about two or three more ahead of time before I'll get stuck.

Akira can hardly keep his excitement to himself as he goes back upstairs. It’s the idea of seeing Tae again and being able to touch her and be with her. She always knows how to make everything better. She’s the only one who knows the best place to scratch at the back of his head. Or that he loves laying on his left side, so she should let him curl up on her right. And Akira’s personal favorite is that she knows kisses along his hairline truly help headaches go away. Tae always says she spoils him rotten, but Akira knows she’s doing her best to care for him. He appreciates it. Always does. 

But as soon as Akira sits back on his bed, his stomach growls.

He completely forgot to get food while he was down there. The whole reason he went downstairs! Tae had distracted him. Akira contemplates going back downstairs but he can’t. He knows that. Tae had, whether she meant to or not, pushed him to slip further into this headspace. Before he could hold himself together, now, not so much. Especially if he had to go around other people. Akira lets out a quiet whine as he immediately scans his room. Maybe he’d helped himself out without knowing it and left some snacks around. But after a few moments of looking, and nothing turning up, he was already close to throwing something. Not to break anything. Likely just a pillow against the wall.

Then he remembers what Tae told him. To use his words when things get difficult. If he thinks things out, then he can think of solutions. The solution this time is to text Tae.

[MSG OUT] I forgot to eat today…

[MSG OUT] I didn’t mean to! But I was in bed all day and then you showed up when I was going to eat and I was so excited to see you that I forgot I was hungry but now I’m back upstairs and my stomach is growling again 

Akira doesn’t really notice his hands shaking while he waits for her reply.

[MSG IN] ok, calm down little mouse.

The name makes him relax more. 

[MSG IN] i’ll head out now & pick up some groceries around the corner. we’ll get some food in you when i come back. 

[MSG IN] does that sound okay?

[MSG OUT] ...Can you pick up stuff for oyakodon?

[MSG IN] as long as you help me make it, absolutely 

[MSG OUT] Really? You’ll let me??

[MSG IN] if you promise to be careful, i don’t see why you can’t help

Akira doesn’t notice, but his feet are tapping very excitedly on the ground. Normally, Tae cooks for them. Even when he isn’t falling into his headspace. He tries to help when he’s bigger, and can handle using a knife. However, he never really catches up to her speed. She’s a doctor after all, and has some of the quickest hands Akira has ever seen. 

His response to her last message is a slew of hearts, and a few exclamation points thrown in there for a good measure. Another one of those instances where Tae counts herself lucky to have such a sweet boy. For now, Akira needs to distract himself for a few hours. The shop will be closing in two hours, and he can probably sneak Tae in in three. Just to avoid the situation of Sojiro forgetting anything and having to come back. The first few times the two of them spent time together at Leblanc after hours, Akira was consistently on edge. 

After all, Sojiro doesn’t live that far away. Before it was almost a form of comfort to know that he was sort of close by. Now when he’s with Tae, especially in his headspace, it makes him worry. Thankfully, Tae always knows how to keep his mind off of it. 

Akira decides to try and take a nap. That always makes time pass quicker, doesn’t it? 

The scratchy shirt from before is taken off and placed in the laundry basket once more. Akira goes to where all of his little clothes are, a box kept under his bed. Most of these were surprises from Tae. She’s perfect at getting a good mix of his own fashion sense while still helping him feel smaller and safer in said clothes. 

This time he decides on a large black sweater with little white paw prints going up the side of it. She made sure to get this a size larger than Akira normally wears. He likes clothes to be bigger on him, because it makes him feel smaller and he can chew on the sleeves if he wants. Which isn't a great thing, but they’re working on that. For pants he pulls out a pair of black pajama shorts, and a pair of socks that have black and white cats on them. Tae learned quickly that anything she would get him would have black or white in it. If they’re those colors, Akira is going to like it. The last item out of the box is the one buried at the bottom. He carefully pulls out a ragged stuffed cat. It’s been his since he was a baby, so the poor thing has gone through the test of time. But, above everything, even Tae sometimes, this little guy provides the most comfort to Akira. He hugs him close, carefully nuzzling his cheek against the cat’s fur.

Now, his bed is more comfortable, and he easily relaxes against it. The discomfort in his stomach keeps him awake for a little, longer than he’d like it to at least. But at some point, Akira’s eyes manage to get heavy, pulling him into a nap. He doesn’t dream, he doesn’t wake up. For what it’s worth, it's a decent nap. When he wakes up once more, the sun is down, and a hand reaches around in the blankets for his phone. Maybe Tae had- 

[MSG IN] i’m outside, little mouse. can you open the door for me?

[MSG IN] ?   
[MSG IN] where are you?

Akira’s eyes widen, before he tosses his phone to the side to scramble out of bed. Those were from almost a half hour ago! Okay, he should have set an alarm- but he was already comfortable of course he would forget!

It’s a miracle he doesn’t fall down the stairs, and truthfully if he was more awake he would have attempted to take them two at a time. Akira quickly unlocks the front door, which surprises Tae who’d taken a seat outside. “There you a-” she gets to her feet and meets Akira’s gaze, as worried as it looks, “What’s the matter?” 

“I’m sorry! I fell asleep and you were waiting out here and-” Akira stops as soon as Tae presses one of her fingers to his lips. “But-” the words are muffled even more as she presses it more firmly against his lips. 

“Hush, it’s okay. It was a nice night out. I thought you may have fallen asleep.” Tae guides him inside, shutting the door behind her. Before she has a moment to turn around Akira is throwing himself at her in a hug. Thankfully Tae keeps her balance, her arms wrapping around his middle and giving as much of a squeeze as she can. “Hi..” her voice is soft and she lets him bury his face into her shoulder, “I missed you, little mouse.” 

“Missed you more…” 

She won’t argue that one.

Tae knows to let Akira pull away first, even if he stays there for almost a minute. When he does so, the grin on his face, while big is still clouded with sleep. “Well you don’t have to worry about that one now do you? I’m here.” A hand is placed to the side of his face as Tae leans up to place a kiss to his cheek. It leaves behind a tint of her lipstick. Knowing how Akira would react and try to rub it off, Tae just decides to not mention it. “Now. I think you’re still hungry aren’t you?” 

The growl in response is enough to answer her question. Tae stifles back a snicker, holding up the grocery bag in her hand. “Got the stuff for oyakodon, just like you asked. Now come on, you can help me make it.” She takes his hand in hers, pulling him around the counter to the kitchen in the back of the cafe. 

“Now. I’m going to handle all the knife work.” As she should. “Can you crack and scramble the eggs for me? Promise you won’t get any shells in them?” While Tae instructs him on what to do she’s placing a small bowl and the eggs in front of Akira. Then she notices that Akira is still holding onto his stuffed cat in one arm. “Ah…’Kira.” 

The looks she receives in return makes her think he hadn’t even noticed he couldn’t help her with just one hand. “How about we let Ruu sit on the counter and watch us, okay?” Tae holds out her hands, never taking the toy without Akira’s permission. But she knew it would likely be harder to do when he immediately clutched the toy closer.. “Hey, it’s alright. I’m not taking him. You might hurt yourself, or get him dirty if you try and cook one handed. You don’t want that do you?”

Akira is quiet for a moment. Of course he doesn’t want him to get dirty, but he’d miss him too much if he was over on the counter. “What if he misses me too much?” 

“It’ll be alright. Come on, we’ll make him comfortable.” Tae scans the counters, wondering how she could make that happen. Her eyes land on some of the folded hand towels nearby, so she takes them and stacks them in an attempt to make some form of a makeshift bed for Ruu. It’s a solid attempt at getting Akira to let go of him. Akira hesitates still, but gives Ruu a kiss to his head before he lays him down on the towel bed. He even covers him with another towel like a blanket. 

“He has to be warm. Can’t be cold,” Akira states. Always the type of person to worry about his friends, or in this case, a stuffed animal before himself. Akira hadn’t noticed he was starting to zone out until he felt the familiar press of lips against his cheek again,

“What a good boy you are.” The praise makes him melt against her. Tae holds onto him, wrapping her arms further around him when he turns into her. “You hungry?” Akira nods, “Alright, let’s get some food in you.” 

Akira manages to hold onto some semblance of his bigger self. He thought it would be important, at least while he’s around a knife and a hot pan. The eggs- right she wanted him to take care of those. Crack it on a smooth surface- not on the bowl. It’s something Tae taught him when they first started seeing each other. However on the first one, Akira does hit it too hard against the counter and it cracks on impact. “...oops.” But he wasn’t worried anymore when Tae started to laugh. Thank goodness. “Yuck..” he almost wipes his hand on his shirt, but thankfully Tae stops him.

She helps him clean up the mess, and his hands. Akira doesn’t break the others after that. And he looks very proud of himself for that.

Oyakodon never takes too long to cook. It takes even less time when someone with fast hands like Tae is making most of it. While it’s resting on the stove Tae makes her way upstairs to grab something for Akira, sighing as she takes in how he left his room. Well, it was going to be a bit of a mess because of how quickly he got out of bed. The food has to sit on the stovetop for five minutes, she can make this happen in five minutes.

Akira is happiest when he’s able to settle into a blanket and pillow pile. But right now the bed is a mess of both. Better to fix it now for when he comes back upstairs. Not only does she fix that but she grabs some of the other stuffed animals from their spot under the bed and places them on either side of the pillows. Now he won’t be lonely when she has to leave later. Speaking of Akira…

“Mama!!” 

“What is it, ‘Kira?” Tae calls, hoping that he didn’t try to be too helpful and make a mess.

“The timer is going off!”

Phew. 

Tae grabs a random bowl from the box before she heads back downstairs. “I didn’t touch it.” Akira even holds his hands up to show that.

“Thank you,” Tae places the bowl down next to the one she had for herself. “penguins okay?” Shes referring to the penguin themed bowl she had grabbed from upstairs. 

“But ‘m wearin’ cats!” 

“Well, it matches your black and white, does that count?” Tae tries not to laugh when she sees the visible pout on his lips, “‘Kira…” As soon as her back is turned, Akira grabs the bowl and makes a dash for upstairs, “Kira!!” Still, Tae lets him go. When he comes back he does indeed have his cat bowl in his hands, “Are you happy now?” Tae asks. The triumphant look on Akira’s face is her answer. 

Tae divides up the rice, egg and chicken mixture into the two bowls, making sure she keeps Akira’s bowl away from him until she’s done cleaning up. The kitchen has to be the way they found it. If given the opportunity, she knows Akira will make a dash for his bowl and go to eat. Akira does try to wait as patiently as he can, drumming his fingers on the counter top. He quiets after, mostly because he figured out he could play with Ruu once again now that they weren’t cooking. 

The two take seats at the counter, Akira digging in as soon as Tae lets him. On the first bite he does an excited tap with his feet against the chair’s legs, “You’re really good at cookin’, mama.” He mumbles around a mouthful of food. He knows not to talk with his mouth full. It slipped his mind this one time. Tae ruffles his mop of hair before she turns to her own bowl. Now, Akira tries very hard to not make any messes while he eats. Just like cooking, eating is also difficult one handed. He’d rather himself get dirty as opposed to dropping any food on Ruu. 

“Here.” 

Tae gently takes the spoon from Akira, shushing him when he whines in protest. She scoops some from Akira’s bowl and holds it out to him. For a moment, Akira hesitates. He’s only ever been that little before once or twice. There’s the part of him that still wants to be independent and feed himself, but he can see Tae really doesn’t mind. Not only does he open his mouth but he leans forward to take almost half the spoon into his mouth. “Be careful, we don’t need any little ones choking in here.” He’d thank her later for helping him while trying to eat her own food. 

When his bowl is empty, Akira feels his eyes start to get heavy once more. He’s sat at the counter while Tae cleans up their dishes, idly playing with Ruu’s paws while he watches her back. “Do you want to play for a little when we get upstairs?” 

“Tired..”

Tae laughs, soft enough that Akira might not have heard it. “You want to go to sleep already? You made a mess out of your shirt you know. We’ll have to get you changed. But then we can think about going to bed, okay?” She leaves out the bit that means she’d have to leave. But she thinks Akira knows. 

Tae leads him upstairs by his hand, and she can see how badly he wants to get into bed when he sees she fixed his bed for him. “Thank you mama…” Akira rubs his eyes, stifling a yawn halfway through his sentence. He cooperates as best as he can with changing his clothes. It would get cold that night, and he’d be thankful for warmer pajamas later on. As Akira gets in bed, Tae does little things around his room. Makes sure his bag is ready for the next day, plugs his phone in to charge, makes sure his alarm is set. The last order of business is making sure the boxes were neatly tucked away under his bed. 

She takes a seat on the side of the bed, bringing the blanket up to Akira’s chest, “All warm? Do you need anything else?” 

Akira is much too tired to use words. He points to his lips, which confuses Tae. She leans in and presses a kiss to his nose, which in turn gets a whine of protest. He taps harder to his mouth, which makes it click for Tae. She reaches back under the bed to find the little case with a few pacifiers she had gotten for him. And she remembers this time. The cat one. His face softens when she hands it to him, opening his mouth for her to put it in. Still, he’s much too cute for his own good. “You’ll let me know in the morning that you’re okay? And call me during the night if you need anything?” Tae asks, playing with his hair. Akira nods. “Make sure you get to school on time?” Another nod. “Come see me before you go home?” She always likes to check on him when he’s pulled out of his headspace. The one time that he didn’t do it properly left him out of sorts for days, and while she may be over-careful she’d prefer that over a repeat of Akira being cranky for days. 

“Thank you for comin’ over, mama…” His voice is so quiet, and words are slurred together thanks to the rubber behind his lips. “I love you.” 

Those are her favorite words to hear, “I love you too, my little prince.” Tae leans down to kiss his forehead, each cheek, his nose, and finally the plastic end of the pacifier. She won’t make him take it out. Her hand moves from his hair to his cheek, her thumb rubbing soft circles into his skin. “Get some sleep. No bad dreams tonight, okay?” Akira gives a nod in return before his eyes finally shut. 

Tae stays until he’s completely asleep. She knows he is when he moves and shuffles around in bed. She carefully gets up and turns on the nightlight by the stairway for him in case he wakes up during the night. She gives one last glance over the kitchen and the counter, making sure everything is as she left it before grabbing her bag, and locking the door before she left. 

Akira does as he’s asked. He texts her in the morning, thanking her once again for coming and taking care of him. 

[MSG OUT] I’m sorry I wasn’t able to say goodbye for real. I didn’t know how tired I was. 

[MSG IN] don’t worry about it. you were too cute to wake up anyways

[MSG OUT] Still. I’ll still come see you before I go home. 

[MSG OUT] Hot coffee with hazelnut and milk?

[MSG IN] you don’t gotta bring me anythin

[MSG OUT] That’s a yes. 

[MSG OUT] I just got to school. Love you, Tae.

  
Tae rolls her eyes at her phone, a smile on her lips. She replies with an _ I love you too _ , before placing her phone next to her and turning back to her paperwork.


End file.
